Massive buttresses
A unique white form braced on four sides.
Abrget47j — CC BY-SA 3.0 ee · Monika mich — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Laima Gūtmane (simka… — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Monika mich — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hannu — Public domain
Kõpu Lighthouse is one of the best-known symbols of Hiiumaa island and one of the oldest lighthouses in the world, in continuous use since its completion in 1531. A huge white structure with an unusual shape, it stands on the island's highest hill amid dense forest. Hanseatic merchants asked around 1490 for a landmark to guide ships past the Hiiu Shoal, on the Baltic's main east-west shipping lane. They applied again at Lübeck in 1499 and received the bishop's permission in 1500. The tower began as a solid mass of stone with no rooms, reached by external stairs, and the stairway and two rooms inside were only cut during reconstruction in the 19th century. The tower is a square prism braced by massive buttresses on all four sides. It stands 37.7 m tall on a 68 m hill, which puts the light 103.6 m above sea level, the highest coastal light on the Baltic. You climb a narrow passage to the balcony and see forest stretching towards the sea. The structure weighs about 12,000 tonnes, built from local limestone and glacial erratics. The lighthouse lies about 32.8 km from Kärdla and 156.6 km from Tallinn in a straight line. The stairs are narrow and steep, so they will not suit every visitor. Check opening times outside summer. Two more lighthouses on the island share a combined ticket with this one.
A unique white form braced on four sides.
Narrow steps cut through solid stone.
Forest stretching towards the sea.
Mägipe village, Hiiumaa, Estonia
Yes during opening times, though the stairs are narrow and steep, so they may not suit everyone.
Its age, dating to 1531, its massive buttressed form and the highest coastal light on the Baltic.